In a recent interview, renowned political philosopher Michael J. Sandel made a sharp remark about the nature of the market economy. According to him, “We have drifted from having a market economy to becoming a market society. A market economy is a tool—a valuable and effective tool—for organizing productive activity. But a market society is a way of life in which market values seep into every aspect of human life.”
Sandel’s argument is not against the market economy. According to him, the market economy is an essential tool for organizing production and the exchange of goods. However, what we must be careful about is allowing market values to guide every aspect of life. Markets must have moral limits; not everything should be treated as a commodity.
One of the clearest examples of this shift from a market economy to a market society can be seen in the fields of education and healthcare. Increasingly, it feels as though everything is up for sale in these areas—provided one has the money to pay for it. The situation is particularly troubling in the case of education. In many places, one can find hoardings advertising the easy availability of matriculation or intermediate certificates, even for those who have failed in earlier classes. Such practices send a dangerous message to students—that education is not about learning but about obtaining a certificate, often for just a few thousand rupees.
Who is responsible for this decline in social values? To a large extent, the answer lies in the present education system. Our education system contains many elements of knowledge and information, but it often lacks consciousness and moral awareness. Students rarely develop the ability to feel and understand the conditions of people around them. As a result, when they grow up, their primary focus becomes earning money for themselves and their families, while their responsibilities as members of society receive little attention.
This concern becomes even more serious when we look at the teaching of social science—the subject that is meant to help students understand society, citizenship, and coexistence. In many schools, social science is not treated with the seriousness it deserves. Often, any teacher who is fluent in English is considered capable of teaching the subject. Because of this neglect, schools fail to develop social consciousness among students. The consequences are visible in the form of corruption, poor civic sense, irresponsible citizenship, declining respect for public institutions, and growing intolerance.
Ironically, we have included moral values in the curriculum but have failed to make them a part of students’ daily lives. It is not uncommon to see schools conducting written examinations for moral values, with questions ranging from multiple-choice questions to true-or-false statements. But how can practices and values that must be lived and experienced be judged through written examinations alone? If such evaluation must be conducted, the questions should be framed in a way that encourages students to reflect on their own identity, behaviour, and social responsibilities.
The purpose of raising these concerns is not to highlight only the shortcomings of our education system. Rather, it is to emphasize that all subjects should not follow the same teaching methods and evaluation techniques. Education must become more flexible and more connected to real life.
It is time for the Indian education system to move beyond textbooks and examinations. Education should not merely be reproduced when needed to secure a job or a deal. It must be lived, practiced, and reflected in the character of citizens. Human beings are social by nature, and the true purpose of education is to sustain harmony between society and the environment. That harmony will remain alive only when humanity—not the market—becomes the measure by which we judge our actions.